Golden Lane

Row of tiny castle cottages where Kafka briefly lived at No. 22

Address Zlatá ulička, Prague Castle, Prague 1

Golden Lane runs along the inside of Prague Castle's northern walls, a row of sixteen tiny houses built into the fortifications in the 16th century. Originally occupied by castle guards and goldsmiths (hence the name), the cottages are now preserved as a living exhibition, each decorated to show how the space was used at different periods.

The houses are genuinely tiny — some barely wider than a doorway — and the upper story along the ramparts has displays of castle armaments and medieval weaponry. Franz Kafka rented No. 22 from his sister during the First World War; a small memorial marks the house. The lane is included in the full Prague Castle circuit or can be entered separately from the castle's east gate.

things to do sight architecture hradcany
A story
Franz Kafka rented No. 22 from his sister Ottla during the winter of 1916–17 and wrote some of the stories that appeared in "A Country Doctor" here. He loved the tiny house for its silence and solitude, though he complained constantly about the cold.